Linger
by Deadpool-kun
Summary: Aomine's confession encroaches Kagami's life greatly, and before he knows it, his heart is beating furiously for Aomine. Prequel to Beleaguered.


An apologetic fic for kiriohisagi-san, MayIGoOutSensei, bloodychild. After what I've done to them with my 'Reply' fic, I believe I own them something fluffy.

But then, I asked myself. What the hell is fluffy anyway?

**Note(s): **Grammatical error, simple language, inner conflicts.

* * *

His grip was too weak that the orange ball slipped from his calloused hands, bouncing loudly against the floor of the court.

However, no one in the gym could blame Kagami, nor did Riko take her paper fan to spank him for such a silly mistake. She was just like Kagami, and the others, couldn't believe the sacred three words had just come out smoothly of Aomine's mouth.

Aomine, of all people in this world, had just _confessed_ to Kagami.

Of course, Kagami found it so comical that he had to ask. "Is this another kind of joke? You should be ashamed if it really is, because it's so lame."

No reply.

Aomine kept staring at him with a firm look.

The cerulean irises pierced into his sharply, sending the shiver down his spine, and Kagami swallowed the lump thickly to clear his throat.

No, it wasn't a joke.

And Kuroko, who had appeared between them out of nowhere, confirmed it all. "Kagami-kun, please take Aomine-kun's feelings into consideration," Kuroko looked up at him. "Aomine-kun isn't the type who likes to play with emotions, even though he's a jerk."

"The last part is completely unnecessary."

Kuroko ignored his former light. "Will you return Aomine-kun's feelings?"

"Hold on a second. First off, Kuroko, why are _you_ doing this? As if trying to sell me to this jerk."

"I'm not a jerk," averred Aomine.

"Yes, you totally are."

"It's not called _sell_ if I ask you nicely, Kagami-kun," said Kuroko. "But, Aomine-kun won't stop unless you say yes, and I wish to not get involved in such a troublesome, sappy process. It will be more convenient if you just return his feelings right away."

"Dammit, Kuroko. You _are_ trading me for your peaceful life!"

"So what?" Aomine suddenly spoke. "Does it matter anyway? In the end, you'll definitely fall for me. Denying your own feelings won't help anything but slow it down."

Kagami stared at him in disbelief. How could Aomine profess it so arrogantly, as though Aomine knew the best what he desired?

"What makes you say I'll return your feelings?" asked Kagami peevishly. "Don't get too cocky, Ahomine!"

Instead of answering his question, Aomine pulled a smirk and caught Kagami by his wrist, startling him. In the heartbeat moment, his crimson eyes widened in genuine surprise while the mischievous midnight irises focused on his.

Then, a pair of lips pressed gingerly onto his.

Kagami was frozen.

It took him a moment to finally register that Aomine was _kissing_ him.

And it surprised him greatly.

It was rather a light kiss, a very short kiss that lasted in a few seconds, in fact, but it was enough to steal Kagami's breath away.

As Aomine pulled away, Kagami felt his cheeks heat up and his heart accelerate. His left hand went to his abused lips, cupping them.

"That kiss is going to help me win your heart."

Aomine whispered, warm breath fanning his lips, making his heart beat rapidly, painting a brighter blush on Kagami's cheeks.

He sputtered, and Aomine smirked at him, letting go of his wrist. Aomine swung on his heels, giving him one quick foxy glance over shoulder, and took his leave, rendering not only Kagami, but everyone in the gym dumbfounded except Kuroko.

"Aomine-kun is really determined, isn't he?" said Kuroko with a knowing smile.

Kagami couldn't answer, nor could he organize his garbled mind into a coherent whole, beleaguered by Aomine's light kiss, only turned his head away to hide his blush from Kuroko's sight.

_Dammit. _His heart was still racing. He hated Aomine so much.

* * *

Days later, as the evening sun slanted through the window, Kagami found himself gazing at the swaying bulky branches outside of his empty classroom.

No matter how hard he tried, it seemed he couldn't get rid of the kissing scene out of his mind. Even worse, it became more vivid and vivid, resurfacing all the details he had missed.

Like how soft Aomine's lips were, the delicious scent Aomine's body radiated off, the delicacy of his touch, his warmth, his breathless whisper.

_Crap. _He turned scarlet at the thought, and Kagami shook his head furiously to clear his cluttered mind.

Feeling giddy from sleepless nights, haunted by the kiss, Kagami lowered his head to the table, hands folding on the table as his pillow.

Half closed his eyes, Kagami found a pair of midnight eyes staring into his.

His eyes snapped open and he blinked a few times, trying to identify the person sitting across his table.

"Yo."

"Aomine?!" Kagami backed away almost immediately, jerking up to his feet abruptly his knee hit table, and he let out a loud painful groan.

"Quite a reaction you've got there," remarked Aomine flatly, resting his chin in his cupped hand on the table.

"When did you learn misdirection? I didn't notice you at all," Kagami sat again, rubbing his sore knee.

"That's impossible. Only Tetsu can pull that off," said Aomine. "Not my fault if you were too busy analyzing that stupid tree to notice my presence."

Kagami harrumphed. "Whatever. More importantly, what are you doing here? At _my _school, _my _classroom, no less."

"Tetsu e-mailed me to come, saying you've been distracted lately."

"And what was he expecting you to do? Some stupid magic tricks to cheer me up?"

"Don't know," Aomine shrugged his shoulders. "I don't have any idea either. But well…" his deep voice trailed off.

"Well…?"

"One-on-one?" a smirk stretched out suggestively. "Or you want a teddy bear to cheer you up?"

Kagami snorted.

"Flush that teddy bear down the toilet. I'm taking one-on-one match."

"Don't cry if you lose. I'm not good with tears."

"Bounce back to you."

…

Kagami had never taken a notice how magnificent the evening sky could be until now. The lines of pink, cranberry red and deep purple conflated beautifully above him as he was on his back, staring up at the picturesque sky.

The one-on-one match with Aomine was so intense that he and Aomine couldn't muster any energy to bark at each other.

And they ended up lying side by side, on the hard asphalt of the court.

His gaze migrated from the sky to Aomine's face.

Aomine had his eyes closed, lips slightly ajar to accommodate faster breath. Kagami scrutinized him closely. His frame glowed in the light of the setting sun, his navy hair and lashes caught in the weak evening light. Beads of sweat slipped down his face, outlining the sculptured features perfectly.

His eyes trailed to Aomine's lips. The memory resurfaced. Kagami swallowed thickly.

"What's been bothering you exactly?" came a question, effectively snapping Kagami back to his senses.

"Again?"

"What's on your mind recently? I don't think you suddenly have taken interest in biology, trying to probe the photosynthesis process with your naked eyes."

Oh.

_Oh._

"Oh," Kagami turned away, blushing. "Uhm… nothing actually."

"Nothing?" reiterated Aomine, pulling himself into a sitting position, elbows on his folded knees. "Tetsu told me you bumped your head on the door, and you're telling me 'nothing'. Yeah, I _believe_ you, Kagami."

"Why do you care so much about it?" he whipped back to Aomine, peeved at Aomine's sarcasm. "It doesn't bother your life."

"It does when it comes to _you_. I love you, remember?"

Hearing those sacred words tumble down Aomine's lips again made his heart boom. He hadn't remembered the fact that Aomine had actually confessed to him days ago until now, considering how easy he was being with Aomine a moment ago.

And he was suddenly aware of the rising of his body temperature.

"It's normal to worry about your loved one, right?" continued Aomine.

Kagami averted his gaze away. "How could you say it so casually? So sure about your feelings?" his voice dropped.

"Honestly, it's not really easy," Aomine sighed. "But, which one do you prefer? A straight-forward-Mine, or a timid-Mine?" he wore a smirk again.

"A timid-Mine? That's absurd!" he laughed as his mind went to visualize a very timid Aomine Daiki, fiddling his fingers, muscular body fidgeting while he tried to form a sentence to confess to him. Kagami thrashed around, laughing harder and harder as his imagination went wilder.

When his eyes caught a smile on Aomine's face, his laughter ceased abruptly.

Against his own will, he was enchanted by the soft smile.

"What's wrong? Got something on my face?" asked Aomine clueless, again nudging Kagami out of his daze.

"Nah, it's nothing," Kagami supported his weight on his hands, getting up to his feet without sparing Aomine as much as a glance, hoping his blush went unnoticed by Aomine. "I'm hungry."

"Now you mention it, I'm hungry as well," Aomine joined him getting up.

"Say, my place? I can fix something for us to eat while you take a shower," he offered after a moment of self-recomposed, acknowledging his apartment was just few blocks away.

"Appealing offer," Aomine picked his duffel bag up and draped his school uniform over his shoulder. "As much as I want to grant your unsaid wish to spend more time with me, but I have to go home before Satsuki yells at me."

"_Unsaid wish_? I've never thought any of them!" he spluttered indignantly.

Aomine laughed.

Kagami felt exasperated with Aomine's casual remark while here he was, genuinely offering as a _friend_. He snatched his bag as he strode briskly past Aomine, heading to the pavement. Then, a shout went up behind him.

"Hey, not bad for a first date, right?"

Date? The realization brought him whipping back questioningly to Aomine, only to find Aomine bathed in reddish weak sunlight, smiling up at him as he waved good-bye, heading off the courts.

His heart fostered him to ask for a clarification, but his brain clamped him, intelligently questioning his gut to talk to Aomine. In the end, Kagami was rooted to the ground, fully knowing he couldn't spill out a word after what had happened between them. Moreover, the kissing scene hadn't cleared from his mind.

Watching Aomine disappeared into a corner, Kagami began to walk again, brows knitting in silence contemplation. Aomine's words got him thinking.

Date? Were they having a date? How could playing one-on-one be considered as a date? Were they actually dating without he realized it?

"OUCH!"

Kagami bumped into a lamp post.

He rubbed his sore nose and sighed. So much for cheering up.

* * *

The truth was Kagami was getting worst.

He'd lost counts those sleepless nights he'd been through. In fact, he'd lost counts the imaginary sheep inside his head to help him drift into sleep. Hundreds? Thousands? _Infinity?_

Instead, the kiss and the so-called date had come replacing them, keeping him awake until the dawn had broken.

_Shit_. Now, he felt so exhausted and cranky.

Kagami began to have a thought of making Aomine a voodoo doll and torturing him to death. That bastard had encroached his life greatly he couldn't sleep at night.

So deep in his thought, Kagami didn't see Furihata's eyes pointed skywards, looking absolutely terrified, until he felt cool water trickle down his crimson-black fringes to his white t-shirt.

Shocked, Kagami followed the line of Furi's sight and found pool of irritating light blue staring innocently down at him.

"Kuroko…" he seethed.

Kuroko jumped from the ladder, holding the hose with his right hand. "I thought Kagami-kun needs some refreshment."

"Refreshment my ass," he grounded the heel of his palm on Kuroko's head, clutching it tightly that Furihata came forward to calm him down.

However, Kuroko had another effective way—spraying the cool water straight into Kagami's face, to Kagami's surprise.

And so, Kagami had to release his deathly grip and backed away, spurting some water out of his mouth. Kuroko could care less Kagami's t-shirt got wet, most probably emboldened by the situation given, which the basketball club was on duty to clean the swimming pool that day.

And Kagami cursed his shadow for it.

"Please do not misunderstand my intention, Kagami-kun," Kuroko shot him a seemingly apologetic look.

He snorted, wiping his nose with the back of his hand.

"It dismays me to see you distracted lately, and I've never thought asking for help from Aomine-kun would make it worse."

That touched Kagami's heart. Kuroko was worried about him after all. And for that, Kagami secretly forgave him.

"It's actually nothing," he assured Kuroko, grinning apologetically. "It's just me, overthinking."

"Yeah, overthinking that you missed your shoots for past few weeks," Hyuuga-senpai chided in, crossing his arms over his chest, certainly annoyed. "I didn't know your puny brain could do the thinking either."

Receiving such a reaction from his captain concluded Kagami perhaps he really went over the limit. He really should get a grip on himself.

"A date with Aomine doesn't mean you can just go mellow or daze all the time!" shouted Hyuuga-senpai exasperatedly.

"Huh?" that got his attention.

Hyuuga-senpai continued chattering away, but quickly cut off by Kiyoshi-senpai's large hand over his mouth. Kagami threw his senpai a quizzical look.

"Kuroko spied on you the other day, and sent us some pictures," explained Kiyoshi-senpai briefly with a goofy smile. "You guys looked cute together, by the way."

If knowing Kuroko had spied on him wasn't enough to rile him up, knowledge of Kuroko spreading pictures of him and Aomine definitely fuelled his anger. Kagami snapped his head to right, looking for the culprit.

However, Kuroko was quick to grab a bar of soap, skillfully used it to glide gracefully on the slippery floor past his teammates, fleeing from his furious light.

Kagami could hear his own vein snapping.

"KUROKO BASTARD!"

* * *

A month after the confession, Kagami found himself sprawling on the couch, his apartment ceiling above him, foot tapping exasperatedly as he listened to Aomine chant 'bored' on the phone.

"Why do I have to listen to your never-ending chanting?!" yelled Kagami.

_"So you'll get bored as well, and decide to go out with me today."_

"Hell no I'm going out with you today!"

_"Then, you have to listen to me chant. I'm bored. I'm bored. I'm bored. I'm bored. I'm bored. I'm bored. I'm bored. I'm bored. I'm bored. I'm bored. I'm bored. I'm bored. I'm bored. I'm bored. I'm bored. I'm bored. I'm bored. I'm bored. I'm bored. I'm bored. I'm bored. I'm bored. I'm bored. I'm bored. I'm bored. I'm bored. I'm bored…"_

An excruciating minute crawled past, and Aomine showed no sign of stopping at all. Had enough of assaulting on his eardrum, Kagami begrudgingly acquiesced.

And so, an hour later, Kagami found himself standing in front of an okonomiyaki restaurant, azure sky above him, hand over his face in defeat, giving out a long sigh as Aomine admired the restaurant.

"Why do I have to do this?" murmured Kagami. They entered the restaurant, nonetheless.

Inside the restaurant it was hot and steamy and full of luscious smells and sounds. Smoke from cooking okonomiyaki mingled with the fug of tobacco that blanketed the room. Hubbub of merry laughter and voices filled the room.

Choosing the table at the corner, Kagami took a seat across Aomine. He handed Aomine another menu book as his eyes skimmed through the page.

Though he was annoyed at the thought of having another so-called date with Aomine, the menu before his eyes did a great job at distracting him, making his mouth water.

"Have you eaten here before?" Aomine initiated a conversation from behind the menu book.

"Yeah, with my teammates."

"Oh?" Aomine put down the menu, curiosity visibly sparking in his denim eyes.

Kagami hummed, recalling the dinner they'd had. "That time, we just had a match with Shuutoku, if I'm not mistaken. Then, we met Kise and his grumpy captain here, eating. So, Kuroko and I joined table with him. But, Midorima and his noisy friend showed up," he chuckled at the memory. "We ended up having dinner together. Kind of ridiculous sitting with a bunch of Miracles while talking about…"

"…About?"

His words got stuck in his throat. Now that his memory had been stirred up, Kagami remembered they'd discussed grimly about the person who was sitting in front of him right now, tanned face lighting up in pure confusion and curiosity.

"About…?" echoed Aomine patiently.

"About you," he ended up coming clean. He wasn't in the mood to beat around the bush.

"Oh," Aomine's voice rose to another octave. "So, what was your first impression?"

"From what I heard, a jerk," answered Kagami flatly. "After our first meeting, a fucking jerk. After our first official match, the worst jerk of the jerks. After the Winter Cup match, downgraded to a normal jerk. And now, you've upgraded to the king of the jerks."

"Didn't know there's a rank for jerks."

"There wasn't, until you came."

Their conversation paused momentarily when a waiter came taking their order. Then, Kagami argued with Aomine over basketball, sharing a little laugh and jokes. Kagami's chest felt a lot warmer and lighter. He had no idea how their conversation could flow so freely albeit the swapping curses. After a minute and so, the waiter returned with their order.

And Kagami had figured Aomine would make such a face—a surprised look.

"Can you really finish that, Kagami?" Aomine pointed at his huge okonomiyaki.

"Do not underestimate me, Ahomine."

"I don't think it's something you should be proud of."

"To me, it should," replied Kagami with an impassive look, even though inside shuddered having Aomine's piercing cerulean eyes trailing all over his body so closely, and slowly settled for something sweeter instead.

Clicking his tongue, Kagami snapped. "What?"

"Wondering if you're keeping a black hole inside your stomach," said Aomine. "I need a logical explanation where all your food goes to."

"And having a black hole inside my body _is_ logic?"

"Yeah, imagine your stomach got a black hole, or some kind of portal connected to another parallel universe, then comes your food, transported through the portal so people or aliens there can eat as well."

"That sounds so… stupid," remarked Kagami bluntly, casually flipping his okonomiyaki and Aomine's over.

"No, I think it makes sense."

As he spoke, Kagami listened to him. Not to his nonsense, but to his deep voice. When he listened carefully, he could hear Aomine's subtle frantic cadence, the rise and fall of his deep voice as he rhapsodized over black holes and universe, and Kagami noticed the childish-glee bubbling up in his tone.

And when Aomine's laughter rang in his ears, Kagami found it so pleasant, soothing his heart.

Being with Aomine was so easy.

Everything flowed like water. Light and natural. Kagami didn't bother to mask up, or filter his words.

He laughed naturally. He riled up easily. And he forgave Aomine quickly.

If wasn't because of the kiss constantly nagged his mind, he wouldn't remember Aomine had confessed to him and realize they actually were on a date.

It was so simple.

"Broaden your imagination, don't let knowledge tie it down," said Aomine with a triumph smile.

"You're talking nerdy. _Impressive_," stated Kagami in thin-veiled sarcasm, shoveling a spoonful of okonomiyaki into his mouth.

"The universe is infinity," said Aomine intelligently with a smart look, fishing for praise from Kagami.

"You forgot something that is infinity too."

"What?"

"Your stupidity."

Instead, what he got was another insult.

"HEY!"

Followed by a loud thump on the rosewood table rippling through the restaurant.

* * *

"Is that Kagamin?"

Came a question from behind Kagami while he was eyeing a pair of basketball shoes at the display mirror. He turned around to a voluptuous pink haired girl and a petit-bodied brunette. He recognized them instantly.

"Momoi and… sorry-mushroom guy from Touou?" Recognized doesn't mean he knew the name. "Fancy meeting you both here."

"Ditto~" she cheered. "By the way, this Sakurai Ryou, not sorry-mushroom guy."

"I'm sorry, Kagami-san, for having a forgettable name," Sakurai quickly bowed.

"No, my fault for not remembering."

But, it didn't stop Sakurai. "I'm sorry you didn't remember my name. I'm sorry bothering you to remember my name. I'm sorry I'm not so important in your life. I'm sorry if you feel annoyed by now."

"I _am_ annoyed by your sorry list."

"I'm sorry—"

"—cut the crap or I smash your face to the wall," he threatened with a dark aura whirled about him. And it effectively clamped Sakurai's mouth shut, looking absolutely petrified while hiding his face behind the plastic bags he was carrying.

"Sa-chan, don't be so afraid of Kagamin. He's actually a nice guy," assured Momoi. Then, she shot a firm look at Kagami. "Don't bully Sa-chan, Kagamin. Aomine-kun alone is enough."

"You saying Aomine bullies this guy?"

"No, please do not misunderstand, Kagami-san," Sakurai shook his head. "He doesn't bully me, he just asks me to make him bento, that's all."

"Bento?"

"Aomine-kun says Sa-chan is a great cook," hummed Momoi. "So, every time we have trainings, Sa-chan has to make him bento. Plus, they're classmates, I could say Sa-chan and Aomine-kun are good friends."

"Oh," replied Kagami. His eyes scanned the brunette comprehensively. A picture of Aomine whining to him came into his mind. He wondered what face Aomine made, or how he sounded when he whined for his bento.

For some unknown reason, Kagami suddenly felt very irritated. His hands subconsciously balled into fists. The notion of Aomine entertaining the thoughts of having him whining to someone else in his childish-like tone over bento irked him to some point he wanted to strangle someone, specifically the one in front of him.

"Rest assured, Kagamin. Aomine-kun only sees Sa-chan as a _classmate_. His ardor is for you only."

When her words finally sunk in, Kagami figured his feelings must have slipped to his face. He could only tear his gaze away from the magenta eyes, slightly flushing in embarrassment.

"I'm sorry if you're having such a thought, Kagami-san, although I don't blame you," said Sakurai shakily. "But, I'd like to thank you for being Aomine-san's friend."

Kagami raised a brow.

"Since you've become his friend, Aomine-san seems to be for friendlier and easier to be approached," Sakurai smiled, a feeling of nostalgia settling on his heart. "Before this, no one had the guts to enter his vicinity, let alone talk to him. Even us, his teammates had problems communicating with him, especially Wakamatsu-san."

Then, Sakurai looked up at him with a small smile. "Everything changed after he met you. And for that, thank you so much, Kagami-san."

Listening to Sakurai somewhat brought pleasant feelings filling his heart. Kagami never thought he could influence Aomine this greatly. Part of his heart screamed triumphantly while part of it actually feared how great his influence upon Aomine's life.

He had Aomine's heart in his hands without he realized it.

One wrong swing, he might crumble Aomine apart.

"I know Dai-chan has a fragile heart, and I know Kagamin is afraid he might crush it," whispered Momoi softly, dainty hand clasping his. "But, I know I can entrust Kagamin to take care of him, because no one can put a smile on his face like Kagamin does," she flashed him a soothing smile.

Her gentle words swept his worries away, and he smiled genuinely at her, clutching her words like souvenir.

"He's lucky to have you as his childhood friend."

"He's lucky to have _you_ as his boyfriend," she winked.

Kagami cringed.

* * *

Kagami went to watch Touou match one Friday evening.

It'd been almost two months after the confession, and Kagami was surprised Aomine was still willing to continue this dating charade—or so he called it, judging how hard Aomine tried to win him over while he constantly rejected him.

He'd be lying if he never felt terrible for playing with Aomine's feelings, though it was Aomine who initiated everything.

He'd told Aomine to forget about him and move on, convincing him he'd never change his feelings for him.

Aomine hadn't said anything at first, heard him out with his sharp gaze on him. After he'd done, then words had come out in an earnest confession.

_"No. I won't give up on you."_

When the words had dawned, a very small part of his heart somewhat had felt relief, and Kagami had no idea why.

Then, they continued their drama like nothing had happened.

A loud cheer from the audience around him deafened his ears, but it didn't budge him at all. His gaze locked on in a certain tanned male in jersey 10.

The player number 10 blazed smoothly his way through the court, skillfully breaking through the opponent's defense, and dunked in with ferocious determination.

A high-pitched whistle was heard, and another score for Touou.

The tanned male gave a smirk, or that's what the opponent would see it. However, in Kagami's eyes, it was a grin, a genuine grin that suffused with pure satisfaction and joy.

Kagami watched him closely.

Such a beautiful, unpredictable movement. He'd never gotten tired of watching him.

Then, he realized.

His heart was beating furiously.

* * *

"Kagami-kun, it's time for you to open your heart."

Kuroko suddenly spoke one evening as they headed to the gym.

"Don't get your point," he parried effortlessly.

"Just be honest to yourself," said Kuroko. "Aomine-kun deserves something better in return after what he's done to you."

His words struck Kagami hard.

"If you're sincere not to return his love, then you should stop giving him hopes," Kuroko opened the door, standing in the door, glancing over his shoulder. "Although I doubt it. You're not being honest to yourself, Kagami-kun."

That day, Kuroko's words remained lingering in his mind.

* * *

Kagami was breathing raggedly.

Leaning against the shady tree, Kagami slid down to the grass, and took a deep breath, calming his heartbeat.

Insomnia hadn't left him alone, making his scalp throb. He'd figured a slow jog in the morning would help him, but he'd never expected to encounter a wild dog.

Never in his life had he ran that fast before. He'd probably broken the world record, running for almost 2 km around the neighborhood within minutes. Or so he thought.

He stared ahead.

Out on the small river, diamonds of sunlight danced on the water, and Kagami stared at their nimble movement.

So relaxing.

His head began to loll against his hoodie, and his eyelids were getting heavier and heavier. One last flutter lashes, Kagami looked skywards, and its azure color reminded him of a certain pair of sharp irises.

Lulled by the Mother nature, Kagami drifted into a deep slumber.

…

Kagami awoke with a start, disoriented and alarmed sleep had taken him away. Under the open sky, no less. However, instead of the small river, he was greeted with the sight of azure eyes staring down at him, shadow looming over his face.

"Oh, you're awake."

"Aomine?!" Kagami bolted upright, but Aomine's hand was quick to hold him in the place, tanned hands over his eyes, pulling his head down back to Aomine's thigh.

"Sleep."

"NO!"

"I said, sleep!" said Aomine staunchly.

Kagami zipped his mouth, reluctantly giving in to Aomine's words. His muscles relaxed, and his breathing steadied away. For a moment, Kagami was savoring the companionable silence between them until Aomine shattered it.

"Why didn't you tell me you're suffering from insomnia?"

He looked up at Aomine, studying him. His denim eyes filled with concern. And Kagami felt his chest constricted.

Kagami opened his mouth. His voice croaked.

"I don't know."

"You've been suffering for two months, for God's sake, Kagami. Two months."

Aomine's deep voice was shaking.

"I don't know."

"And you didn't let me know about it."

"I don't know."

"I found out from Tetsu, not from yourself. And seriously, I was very worried."

"I don't know."

"Is there anything that you _know_, Kagami?"

Kagami was silence, staring at Aomine, couldn't find an answer. Everything suddenly came flooding back in a huge wave, and Kagami couldn't sort them anymore. Aomine's sudden confession, Aomine's light kiss, their first date, then other dates, his jumbled feelings and thoughts, Kuroko's words; they rushed back in a mess.

In the end, he could only answer; "I don't know."

Aomine heaved a sigh. His chest heaved down as he did so. "Then, I'll wait. Until you sort your brain out, I'll wait. I won't force you."

Kagami swallowed thickly. The way Aomine said it had him a weird feeling tugging at his heart, as though Aomine was talking about Kagami's feelings for him.

He was cruel. Cruel to Aomine. Leaving him hanging on for months, waiting patiently for him to reciprocate his feelings while investing everything he had to win him over. He'd been taking and taking without willing to give even a tad of his heart to Aomine, but Aomine never complained.

He watched as Aomine reclined on the trunk, slowly closing his eyes. Kagami let his gaze roamed over Aomine's face, taking in small details of his features, marveling at his masculinity.

His heart was thumping, and Kagami parted his lips to catch his breath. He could feel his ears reddening and blush creeping up his neck.

Could he do this? Returning Aomine's feelings?

The truth was he was never good at thinking, and he knew that.

Hence, letting his instinct take over his mind, in one swift movement, closing his eyes, Kagami crawled up and pressed a kiss onto Aomine's lips.

Just a simple kiss, but like Aomine's light kiss, it stole his breath away.

When he pulled away, his crimson eyes clashed with a pair of surprised cerulean eyes, and Kagami felt a wave of embarrassment swept over him, immediately distancing himself from Aomine.

However, Aomine was faster and shot out his hand, grabbing Kagami by his wrist.

"Kagami…" said Aomine breathlessly.

Kagami looked away, scarlet painting on his face.

Aomine pulled him closer, and his body mindlessly moved along until he was seated between Aomine's legs. Kagami hung his head low, trying to hide his feverish blush though he knew better it was completely fruitless.

"Hey, look at me."

Longer, calloused tanned fingers caressed his cheek.

"Kagami, look at me," he rasped out.

He hated that deep voice. It broke through his wall he'd built over years and made him oblige Aomine's words. Reluctantly, he brought his gaze up to level with Aomine's.

Held by such an intense gaze made his breath hitch. Kagami could hear his heart thundering in his ears. His stomach churned with anticipation, throat bobbing, trying to clear a thick lump in his throat.

"Wanna talk about it?" asked Aomine softly.

He shook his head.

"Kagami…" he called out. "Say it, I want to hear it myself."

He lowered his head, but Aomine's hand brought his head up again, cupping his face. Aomine closed the distance between them, face only few inches apart, looking straight into his crimson eyes.

"You know I love you, right?"

He nodded numbly. Aomine placed a kiss on his forehead.

"And you love me too."

He blushed harder. Aomine pressed a kiss on his eyelid.

"Then, say it."

Kagami opened his mouth. Words expelled in the breathless surge of confession.

"I hate you. Hate you so much I feel suffocated. I can't get rid of you from my head. Haunting each day me, even in my sleep. I hate your voice. I hate your laughter. I hate your patience. I hate everything about you and I hate you so much for making me love you."

He didn't continue.

He _couldn't_ continue when he felt something on his lips, something like a tickle, almost, but with different sensation, something unfamiliar, yet he thought he'd felt it before. Like that day, when Aomine first had confessed to him.

What was it again?

Like Aomine's light kiss.

Oh.

_Oh._

_Aomine kissing him._

Every single thought process in Kagami's body immediately shut down. He could only feel the soft press of his lips to his own, his body sensitized with the feeling of Aomine against him. In one moment, all those awful thoughts, fears, and worries fled, replacing with an eruption of panic thought _'what to do?!'_

Sure, Alex had kissed him many times before. But, this was different. Alex's kiss was playful. But, this, it was deeper, and filled with love.

He didn't move. He couldn't move because he didn't know what to do. He tried to breathe, but he couldn't because, _shit_, Aomine was so close to him, nose brushing up against his, warm and _real_.

When he felt something wet and hot run across his bottom lip, Kagami jolted a bit, reflexively parting his mouth.

Then, he _knew _what was kissing truly was.

Aomine's tongue slid over his languidly, lazily exploring, tasting his mouth. Aomine settled his hand on Kagami's waist while right hand held Kagami in the place. Kagami crawled closer, roaming his hand around Aomine's body up to his shoulder as he deepened the kiss. Aomine's sweet, cinnamon taste, Kagami wanted them all. He savored the sensation, focusing all his senses to the kiss.

When Aomine sucked on his tongue, a muffled moan exited his throat into Aomine's mouth. If he wasn't infatuated by Aomine's kiss and touch, he'd have scurried away in embarrassment.

Aomine didn't stop, kissing harder and harder, swiping, curling, brushing his tongue against Kagami's, eliciting traitorous moan after moan from Kagami. Every delicious moan escaping Kagami drove him crazier and crazier.

Up to some point, Kagami felt suffocated, lightheaded, starving for oxygen. His hands went to Aomine's chest, and it took him considerable effort to brace himself, yanking himself from Aomine, gulping in some precious air.

When he thought it was over, Aomine proved him wrong by pulling him down, his back in Aomine's laps, and swooping in for another kiss.

Kagami was struggling, hands and legs flailing in the air, reaching for something to hold on. His right hand clutched Aomine's arm beseechingly, face flushing red.

Desperate for precious oxygen, Kagami threw a hard blow to Aomine's face, regaining his freedom, and rolled off of Aomine's laps, panting heavily.

He watched Aomine through lidded eyes as Aomine groaned loudly in pain, hand over his face.

"OWWWW! WHAT THE HELL WAS THAT FOR, BAKAGAMI?!"

Kagami wiped his lips. "Your own damn fault, kissing me so hard I couldn't breathe! I thought I was going to die!"

"You could've said my name!"

"How was I supposed to do that when your mouth over mine?!"

Aomine was startled. His brows knitted in contemplation. When realization seemed to come, he turned slightly pale. His hands dropped to the ground, looking apologetic. He averted his gaze away, faint pink dust visible on the side of his cheeks. "…sorry. Got carried away."

Seeing Aomine blush was something new to Kagami. His heart was pounding loudly. He sauntered up to Aomine and sat down, examining Aomine's face. "My fault too. Shouldn't have punched you that hard."

They lapsed into silence for a moment. His ears caught faint breeze slicing through, whipping up their hair and the calm water.

"What makes us now?" asked Kagami shakily.

Aomine hummed for a moment, grinning. "Lovers!" then, he asked childishly. "So, what are we going to do now? Another date? Or jump to the second base?"

Kagami shook his head. His casual remark prompted a sigh from Kagami. A sigh of relief. Aomine really knew how to summon him out of his brooding. Just like how the sun brightened the world with its warm light, that's how exactly Aomine brightened his day with his sunny smile.

It was warm, light, and simple.

Kagami climbed up Aomine's laps again, tittering as confusion passed over Aomine's face. Kagami settled down in his laps and rested his head on Aomine's shoulder, breathing in Aomine's scent.

"Now, we just stay here. I really need to take a nap," he nuzzled up against Aomine's neck.

Aomine smiled down at him and kissed his cheek lightly.

"Great idea."

After been through very long sleepless nights, finally Kagami dreamed again.

And it was a pleasant dream, with Aomine in it.

* * *

That night, as Kagami walked out of his bathroom, crimson-black hair dripping wet with a towel draped over his shoulder, he noticed his cell phone blinking.

Flipping it open, hundreds of congratulation e-mails spammed his inbox.

Kagami turned pale, wondering how they knew about his relationship and Aomine.

Quickly skimming through the inbox, Kagami jumped from one e-mail to another without sparing as much as a glance. Sometimes, his thumb stopped punching the button when he stumbled upon familiar names.

Like…

**Midorima  
**_Shin-chan says congrats! he's 2 shy 2 tell u himself!_

Or…

**Kise  
**_was it true? was it? was it? (__ﾟ__Д__ﾟ__;≡;__ﾟ__Д__ﾟ__)  
2 think aominecchi finally caught u! wow!  
congrats btw! __＼__(__ 0__)__／_

And…

**Tatsuya  
**_hey, muro-chin's bro, congrats. take care of mine-chin 4 us, k?_

_dun worry, muro-chin dunno 'bout this. i'll keep ur secret if u send me chocolate every day._

Even…

**Unknown  
**_Finally Daiki caught you. Congratulation, I wish you the best._

_I'm Akashi, by the way, and it is advisable to keep this number.  
In case of emergency._

Kagami smiled bitterly at the e-mail. How did Akashi even know he didn't have his number was the biggest mystery for Kagami.

However, one particular e-mail had his attention.

**Kuroko  
**_Congrats. & you should've been more discreet._

_Attachment… Image (34 KB)_

And so, he opened the image attachment. When the image finally downloaded, Kagami felt his blood pressure suddenly skyrocket.

It was an image of him and Aomine kissing.

"KUROKO BASTARD!"

* * *

**A/N: **Done~ I just realized my version of Kagami is quite OOC. But, meh...

So, after this I have to disappear into reality, it means I won't be able to write as frequent as it is, because a new semester has started. Same goes with Ambivalence, Crimson, and Colour (I post it on tumblr only, sorry. Gotta check my tumblr page, then check my fic list), their pace will be slowed down.

I'm truly sorry.

Thank you for reading.

Till then...


End file.
